Journal lubricating pad



July 3, 1962 E. s. PEARCE 3,042,466

JOURNAL LUBRICATING PAD Filed Dec. 31, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet. 1

IN V EN TOR.

gorw/v J PEA P66 July 3, 1962 E. s. PEARCE JOURNAL LUBRICATING PAD 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 31, 1958 INVENTOR.

United States Patent Ofifice 3,042,466 Fatented July 3, 1952 3,042,466 JOURNAL LUBRICATING PAD Edwin S. Pearce, Indianapolis, Ind, assignor to Railway Service and Supply Corporation, Indianapolis, Ind., a corporation of Indiana Filed Dec. 31,1as, Ser. No. 784,111 8 Claims. ((11. 308-243) This invention relates to a lubricating pad for use in the journal boxes of railway cars. More particularly, the invention is directed to a pad embodying a block of porous, resilient material which serves to maintain the lubricating surfaces of the pad resiliently in contact with the journal.

One feature of the invention lies in the fact that the resilient material conveniently is a single block having the general shape of a parallelepiped and is completely covered by or encased in a cover of coarse fabric, such as duck, having on its outer surface a deep pile consisting of twisted loops of coarse string or the like. The cover is made with an opening at one or both of its ends, such opening being large enough to permit the resilient block, when compressed, to be inserted into or removed from the cover. The block is desirably a foamed urethane block of the open-cell type. At each end of the pad is a relatively rigid plate or bar, such bars being held in place by a cord extending through the bars and the pad. The opening which permits the resilient block to be inserted or removed from the cover is desirably located at the bottom of each end face of the pad so that one of its edges may be used, in cooperation with an appropriate tool, in inserting the assembled pad into a journal box in a manner to be explained more fully hereinafter.

Other features of the invention will become apparent from the following more detailed description and from the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an axial section of a journal box showing the completion of the operation of inserting my pad into position therein;

FIG. 2. is a longitudinal vertical section of the pad on the line 2-2 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 3 is an elevation of the outer end of the pad;

FIG. 4 is an isometric view of one portion of the pad cover;

FIG. 5 is an isometric view of the other portion of the pad cover;

FIG. 6 is an isometric view of the partially completed pad cover;

FIG. 7 is a fragmental section on an enlarged scale showing the nature of a preferred material for use in the pad cover;

FIG. 8 is a plan view on a reduced scale of a tool useable in positioning the pad in the journal box; and

FIG. 9 is a side elevation of the tool shown in FIG. 8.

In FIG. 1, I have shown a railway car journal box 19 and its associated journal 11, the latter being shown in full lines as elevated above its normal position relative to the journal box to facilitate insertion of the lubricating pad 12. After such pad is inserted and positioned, the truck frame will be raised and the conventional brass and wedge (neither of which is shown) will be inserted above the journal 11 to transmit the load between the journal and the upper wall of the journalbox.

The pad, which is designated in its entirety by the reference numeral 12, comprises a block 14 of resilient material, preferably a urethane foam of the open-cell type. Such block is encased in a cover desirably formed of material of the type shown in FIG. 7. Such material comprises a base fabric 16 provided with a pile formed by loops 17 of string or the like. Preferably, the fabric 16 is a medium weight cotton duck and the loops 17 are formed of a loosely twisted, coarse cord, such as that known in the trade as yarn cotton 5 ply-4. The loops may have a in! length of about two inches and be distributed over the base fabric 16 on about inch centers.

The cover may be made in various ways, one convenient way being illustrated in FIGS. 4, 5, and 6. In those figures, the cover is shown as being formed inside-out and, for purposes of clearer illustration, inverted. The cover illustrated comprises two strips 20 and 21 of the pile material, each strip having marginal portions of the base fabric 16 extending outwardly beyond the pile. The pile-bearing portion of the strip 20 has a width approximately equal to the length of the block 14 and a length such that. it can extend across one face of such block and vertically along the sides of the block to the opposite face thereof. The pile-bearing portion of the strip 21 has a width approximately equal to that of the block 14 and a length permitting it to extend along-suchopposite block face and vertically across the ends of the block.

In assembling the cover, the strip 20 is positioned medially of the strip 21, extending transversely thereof, and with the piled faces of both strips facing each other, and the ends of the strip 20 are secured to the sides of the strip 21 as by rows of stitching 22 (FIG. 6). The ends of the strip 21 are then folded vertically and secured to the sides of the strip 20 by rows of stitching 23. As will be clear from FIG. 4, the stitching 23 is interrupted for a distance extending in both directions from the center of the end of the strip 21 to leave at one horizontal edge of the end of the completed cover an opening 24. Along one edge of such opening, the end portion of the strip 21 forms a loose lip 25, the purpose of which will become apparent hereinafter. It will be understood that FIG. 4 shows the cover in uncompleted condition and that to complete it the near end of the strip 21 will be folded upwardly and sewn to the strip 20 by stitching 23 to leave an opening and lip corresponding to the opening 24 and lip 25 at the remote end of the cover.

When the cover is completed as just indicated, it is turned inside out through one of the openings :24 from the condition shown in FIG. 4 to bring the piled surfacesto the outside. The block 14 is then compressed and inserted into the cover, which desirably fits the block rather s nugly but not tightly enough to compress it materially.

To complete the pad, strips 30 of relatively rigid material are positioned against the ends of the pad and held in place conveniently by a length of flexible cord 31. Desirably, the cord is doubled and knotted at 37 near the base of the bight formed by the doubling to provide a loop 33. The two end portions of the cord may then be passed, conveniently with the aid of long needles, through one of the strips 30, thence through the pad, and finally through the other strip 30. By knotting the ends of the cord together at 34, the strips 30 are drawn securely against the ends of the pad. The strips 30 are conveniently of hard fiber and may have a width equal to about one-third the thickness of the block 14 and. a length equal to about two-thirds the width of such block.

A preferred material for the block 14 is a polyether type of polyurethane foam. The density of such material may range from about two to about six pounds per cubic foot, with foams of lower density being in general the more desirable.

A pad such as above described is conveniently placed in the journal box with the aid of a tool such as illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9. Such a tool comprises a strip 35 of generally flat flexible stock, such as 0.032 inch by 2% inch spring steel. At one end, the strip may be rolled to provide a'handle 36, while at the other end it is provided with a series of teeth or serrations 38.

To facilitate insertion of the pad, the brass and wedge I may be removed from the journal box and the truck frame lowered to bring each journal box and journal into the relative positions indicated in full lines in FIG. 1. The pad, disposed with the openings 24 at the bottom, is placed on the inserting tool and the teeth 38 of the latter are engaged with the lip 25 at that end of the pad remote from the loop 33, which liphas been pulled outwardly through the opening 34 for that purpose. By manipulating the tool, the pad can be forced into the journal box past the collar 11 of the journal 11 to a position beneath the journal, and the tool then withdrawn. Thereafter, the truck frame can be raised and the brass and wedge reinserted to bring the journal and journal box into the relative positions indicated in dotted lines in FIG. 1, thereby compressing the pad between the journal and the bottom of the journal box.

Prior to insertion in the journal box, the pad is soaked in oil, which fills all capillary passages in and between the loops 17 as well as the intercommunicating voids in the block 14. When the pad has accumulated dirt in objectionable quantity, it may be removed by reversing the process followed in its insertion. In removing the pad, the inserting tool is not used as the Withdrawing effort can be applied through the loop 33. In inserting and withdrawing the pads it may not always be necessary to remove the brasses and wedges and lower the truck frame, as many journal boxes provide beneath and outwardly beyond the collar 11' clearance adequate to permit passage of the pad. When the pad is withdrawn, untying of the knot 34 permits removal of the cords 31 and strips 30, whereupon the block 14 may be withdrawn through one of the openings 24 and the cover laundered or otherwise cleaned to condition it for reuse.

A pad constructed in accordance with my invention has several features which contribute to its desirability. It has, for example, an exceptional ability to retail oil, the weight of oil retained after draining equaling, in some instances, as much as six times the dry weight of the I pad. Due to the low density of the block 14, it can maintain contact between the cover and the journal without undue pressure on the journal and in spite of such variations as occur in practice in the distance between the journal surface and the bottom of the journal box. Preferably, the thickness of the block 14 is such that the total pressure exerted by the pad on the journal does not exceed a maximum of about 15 pounds. In standard railway-car journal and journal box constructions, and

with the cover made of the fabric above described, a block 14 having a thickness of about three inches has proven satisfactory.

I claim as my invention:

1. A lubricating pad for railway-car journal boxes, comprising a unitary parallelepipedal block of foamed resilient material of the open-cell type and a cover therefor, said cover having walls substantially completely covering all faces of the block and having adjacent at least one end edge of the block an opening through which the block, in compressed condition, can be inserted into and removed from within the cover, said cover being formed of a base fabric provided over substantially the entire exterior surface of the walls, including its end walls, with a pile comprising loops of coarse string adapted to engage and feed lubricant to the cylindrical bearing surface of an associated journal and to the opposed thrust-transmitting surfaces of the collar and flange at the ends of the journal. I

2. A lubricating pad for railway-car journal boxes comprising a unitary block of foamed resilient material of the open-cell type having top, bottom, side, and end-faces, and a cover of flexible oil-absorbent material for said block, said cover having top, bottom, side, and end Walls overlying the respectively corresponding faces of said block, and strips of rigid material disposed against the end faces of the pad and held in place by a cord which extends through the block.

3. A pad as set forth in claim 2 with the addition that said cord, at one end of the block, is provided with a loose loop.

4. A lubricating pad for railway-car journal boxes, comprising a unitary parallelepipedal block of foamed resilient material of the open-cell type and a cover therefor, said cover having walls substantially completely covering all faces of the block and having adjacent at least one end edge of the block an opening through which the block, in compressed condition, can be inserted into and removed from within the cover, said cover being formed of a. base fabric provided over substantially the entire exterior surface of the walls, including its end walls, with a pile comprising loops of coarse string adapted to engage and feed lubricant to the cylindrical bearing surfaces of an associated journal.

5. A journal box lubricator according to claim 4 with the addition that the foamed resilient material of which said block is formed is a foamed polyurethane of the polyether type having a density of about two pounds per cubic foot.

6. A journal box lubricator according to claim 4 with the addition that the foamed resilient material of which said block is formed is a foamed polyurethane having a density of about two pounds per cubic foot.

7. A journal box lubricator according to claim 4 with the addition that the foamed resilient material of which said block is formed is a foamed polyurethane of the polyether type.

8. A journal box lubricator according to claim 4 with the addition that the foamed resilient material of which said block is formed is a foamed polyurethane.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 591,406 Koch Oct. 12, 1897 602,854 Koch Apr. 26, 1898 2,713,524 Hagy July 19, 1955 2,762,665 Harkenrider Sept. 11, 1956 2,781,239 Potter Feb. 12, 1957 2,807,803 Rockwell Sept. 24, 1957 2,820,679 Hoyer et al. Jan. 21, 1958 2,859,074 Dilg Nov. 4, 1958 2,888,411 Pace May 26, 1959 2,897,028 Potter July 28, 1959 2,919,964 Evans Ian. 5, 1960 2,929,664 Hoyer et al Mar. 22, 1960 2,975,009 Bair Mar. 14, 196 1 FOREIGN PATENTS 39,246 Austria Oct. 11, 1909 OTHER REFERENCES Foamed Polyurethanes', published in British Plastics, January 1956, pages 5-9 and 39 relied upon. 

